"Parents, after all, were especially proud to see courage in their children rewarded by the world. And to know that love abounded around them. Everywhere. Forevermore."
-Beth
The King is the twelfth novel of the Black Dagger Brotherhood series by J.R. Ward. It follows Lover at Last and precedes The Shadows. In the Fallen Angels series, it falls between Possession and Immortal. Fallen Angels is a separate series that takes place in the same universe as the Black Dagger Brotherhood and shares locations, lore, and characters. It takes place concurrently with the main series and each book was published between every other Black Dagger Brotherhood book from Lover Avenged and The Shadows, however, all events of Fallen Angels take place more or less at the same time as Lover Avenged.
Synopsis[]
LONG LIVE THE KING!
After turning his back on the throne for centuries, Wrath, son of Wrath, finally assumed his father's mantle--with the help of his beloved mate. But the crown sets heavily on his head. As the war with the Lessening Society rages on, and the threat from the Band of Bastards truly hits home, he is forced to make choices that put everything--and everyone--at risk.
Beth Randall thought she knew what she was getting into when she mated the last pure blooded vampire on the planet: An easy ride was not it. But when she decides she wants a child, she's unprepared for Wrath's response--or the distance it creates between them.
The question is, will true love win out... or tortured legacy take over?
Main Characters[]
Other Characters[]
Speaking Roles[]
- Abalone
- Abalone the Noble Redeemer
- Ahgony
- Anha
- Antoine
- Assail
- Bella
- Big Rob
- Blaylock
- Ehric
- Elph
- Evale
- Fritz
- Havers
- iAm
- Ichan
- Jane
- John Matthew
- Julie
- Lassiter
- Manny
- Marisol
- Marissa
- Mrs. Carvalho
- Naasha
- Night
- Paradise
- Payne
- Phil
- Qhuinn
- Rhage
- Saxton
- Selena
- s'Ex
- Throe
- Tohrture
- Trez
- Two Tone
- Tyhm
- Tyhm's doggen butler
- Unnamed Black Dagger Brother
- Unnamed blonde human woman
- Unnamed brunette human prostitute
- Unnamed human prostitute
- Unnamed human drug wholesaler
- Unnamed human woman at the Iron Mask
- Unnamed female vampire
- Unnamed guy in line at the Iron Mask
- Unnamed healer
- 5 unnamed human men
- Unnamed lesser
- Unnamed neurologist
- Unnamed nurse at Havers' clinic
- Several unnamed vampire construction workers
- Vishous
- Wrath the Fair
- Xcor
- Xhex
- Zsadist
- Zypher
Mentioned or Non-Speaking Roles[]
- Amalya
- AnsLai
- Autumn
- Balthazar
- Boo
- Darius
- Dick
- Eduardo Benloise
- Ehlena
- Enoch
- Fredericah
- George
- Ivan
- Layla
- maichen
- Nalla
- The Omega
- Queen Rashth
- Rehvenge
- The Scribe Virgin
- Wellsie
Plot[]
Warning[]
Readers should be aware that this book contains attempted rape, homophobia, drug use, suicidal ideation, ableism, complications during childbirth, and rampant misogyny, including control over family planning and an appearance by Havers.
Reminder that this wiki contains spoilers so please proceed with caution.
Prologue[]
In the Old Country in the 17th century, Wrath the Fair met his betrothed, Anha, shortly after his father's death and his coronation. Surrounded as she was at the time by the Black Dagger Brotherhood, who intimidated him, he first fell in love with her scent and immediately bonded with her. He adorned her in the queen's rubies and mated her then and there, to the consternation of the court.
Chapter 1[]
At his apartment in Manhattan, Beth and Wrath are enjoying a romantic getaway since they haven't really had time to themselves after the assassination attempt. Just remembering it makes Beth cry and she worries about losing him.
Wrath has had his hands full with ruling and hasn't taken even a night off. He feels like he can never be the king his father was as Wrath the Fair had been loved by the race, there was stability, and no treasonous plots against him. He hates where he's at right now.
Chapter 2[]
Ichan and Tyhm bring Xcor to Abalone to ostensibly "have a conversation about the future;" in actuality it's a warning that he has to declare his allegiance one way or the other. His response is "Long live the King." Ichan subtly threatens Abalone's daughter, Paradise. Part of his argument against Wrath includes the fact that his shellan, Beth, is a half-breed; the Council's planning to vote to remove the king on that basis due to their inability to control Wrath. Xcor holds no particular regard for either Ichan or Tyhm and sees them as disposable pawns.
Heading downtown to look for a fight, one finds Xcor, although they're humans.
Chapter 3[]
Marisol's been kidnapped by Benloise's goons for breaking into Benloise's house and messing with a statue to send a message. Searching in the dark trunk of a car heading north, she finds a road flare and intends to use it in self-defense.
A usual night at the Iron Mask is cut short for Trez when a migraine hits.
Chapter 4[]
Beth has been spending a lot of time with Layla lately in hopes of triggering her Needing, thanks to an old wives' tale that spending a lot of time with a pregnant woman is rumoured to have that effect.
Xcor finds himself in an abandoned commercial kitchen chasing a lesser where he finds a human corpse hanging from a hook and chain and scares off the humans who tried to start something with him.
Chapter 5[]
On his way up to his room, John Matthew meets Beth's eyes in passing and has a seizure.
Assail and his cousins pay Benloise a visit to get Marisol back.
Chapter 6[]
Blay, Qhuinn, Xhex, and Wrath are keeping from Beth whatever John Matthew was trying to say before passing out, which just pisses her off. Beth's also worried that she might be infertile.
Chapter 7[]
Unfortunately, Assail and his cousins only encounter bodyguards who don't know anything about the kidnapping.
After driving for five hours, the kidnappers, Two Tone and Phil, reach their destination. As soon as they open the trunk, Marisol stabs the road flare in Phil's face and makes a break for it. Two Tone shoots her in the leg and forces her back to the cabin at gun point, then ends up having to drag her inside.
Chapter 8[]
Wrath works off some stress by sparring with Payne, but he loses it in his rage and starts to choke her. George barking in his face is the only thing that gets through to him. After apologizing, he swears off fighting with Payne and goes to cool off in the showers where he gets jumped by someone with a knife.
Chapter 9[]
Selena helps iAm take care of Trez in the aftermath of his migraine even though iAm disapproves of the feelings between his brother and the Chosen.
On Assail's orders, Ehric and Evale bring Sola's grandmother to his home. Less than impressed with their empty kitchen cupboards, Mrs. Carvhalho insists they take her to the supermarket so she can cook. The three giant, murderous, drug-dealing vampires don't know what to do with the elderly human and give into her requests, which are not phrased in any way as a question but rather as an expectation. Assail agrees as long as he pays for everything, but she only acquiesces to that if they let her do the darning.
Chapter 10[]
Payne's holding a knife to Wrath's throat, reminding him that he can overpower her at any time. Reminding him that she's the daughter of a goddess, she could kill him at any time, too, but keeps those abilities in check. Wrath shouldn't withdraw from their bouts over her brother, but Wrath reminds her that Blay and Qhuinn don't go into the field together, nor would Xhex be on the same team as John Matthew if she fought. More than any of that, though, he doesn't want to accidentally kill her.
She asks him when he stopped fighting with the Brothers and he says when he went blind, but she thinks it's been since he took the throne. She tells him that she thinks he's chauvinistic and if he doesn't believe her, then he should talk to Beth about what it's like to deal with him and why she hasn't been telling him where she's been going while he's working. If she felt respected, then Beth wouldn't have to hide anything.
Chapter 11[]
Wrath has George scent down Bethand finds her with Layla. He's terrified to hear that she's trying to trigger her Needing, but instead of talking to her like a normal person, he tells her that he will never service her in her Needing. She tries to get him to talk to her, but he tells her that no amount of talking will get him to change his mind so she should just accept it. He's scared to death he'll lose her in pregnancy. To try and get him to realize how unreasonable he's being, she asks him what if she told him that she wants a child and he's going to give it to her so he should just get used to the idea. She can say that all she wants, but she can't force him to be with her. He tells her to stop sitting with Layla every night and if they're lucky, they can forget all about it.
He asks her when she was going to tell him what she was trying to do when she knew that he didn't want young. She warns him that she's leaving the mansion for the night because she can't be around him and when she gets back, they're going to have a discussion. At the rate he's going, all he's going to have left is his desk and throne. The only thing that keeps him from chasing after her is remembering Jane recommending an MRI for John Matthew after his seizure that Beth insisted on being with him for.
Being overbearing as usual, Wrath had confronted Qhuinn about what John Matthew had signed to Beth right after his seizure: "I will keep you safe. I will take care of you." Wrath takes umbrage with anyone else feeling protective of Beth, seeing that as his job and his alone.
His fears over Beth getting pregnant aren't just about losing her, but also because he doesn't want to condemn an innocent child to the role of king.
Chapter 12[]
Assail's next step is to go to Benloise's art gallery to confront him and throw him into his car for a conversation while Ehric drives.
While Fritz drives Beth and John Matthew to the hospital, he's worried about Beth and tries to get her to open up about what's bothering her. They're interrupted by another of John Matthew's seizures.
Chapter 13[]
Assail and Ehric take the Benloise brothers into the country and work them over with knives. Eduardo's the first to break and gives them specific directions to the cabin. They're both killed.
Chapter 14[]
The court executioner for the Shadows, s'Ex, meets with iAm and warns him that if he has any way of getting his brother to fall in line with the Queen's will, he'd better do so soon because he's been given very explicit directions on how to torture then execute iAm's parents. While the twins are far from close with their parents, iAm's not ok with the thought of them suffering.
Chapter 15[]
The neurologist doesn't see anything amiss on John Matthew's MRI and gives Manny some advice on what to keep an eye out for. In the car on the way back to the mansion, Beth admits to John Matthew that she wants a baby, but Wrath is opposed to it. John points out that Wrath's probably worried about losing her, but Wrath set down a royal veto instead of discussing it with her, preferring to drug her during her Needing like an animal. He offers Darius' mansion, which Beth gave to him, for her to stay at since she's so mad she'll tear into Wrath the moment she sees him.
Chapter 16[]
Wrath goes to Havers' clinic accompanied by Vishous to get drugs for Beth's Needing. Wrath tries the whole "it's for a friend's shellan" routine, but Havers refuses to give narcotics to anyone other than the female's hellren, her father, or the oldest male of her househjold because someone else will have to administer it to her since she'll likely be unable to due to the Needing and he doesn't think females "have the best heads for these things anyway." That little gem reminds Wrath of Payne accusing him of being a misogynist. Vishous reminds him that his mate is a doctor who will handle it so he'll sign for the drugs.
Wrath tells V about the disagreement he's been having with Beth and V personally is glad that Jane agrees with him about not having kids. V has a vision of Wrath surrounded by white and a face in the heavens and tells him that the future is in Wrath's hands.
Chapter 17[]
In 1664, it's been a year since their mating and Wrath's court is still making Anha's life hell. Two weeks after her Needing, they're at a glymera event when she collapses.
Chapter 18[]
Sola wakes up alone on a concrete floor in a basement cell with a splitting headache. Although the bullet didn't hit a bone, the wound about six inches above her knee hurts like hell. Two-Tone enters shortly after she regains consciousness and attempts to rape her. As soon as she has a chance, she grabs his scrotum and twists as hard as she can. While he's curled up in pain, she grabs one of the chains and wraps it around a fist, then proceeds to beat him to death. After taking his gun and locking the body in the cell, she makes her way upstairs where she finds the body of the other kidnapper who died when she stabbed him with the flare.
The front door's locked and fingerprint coded and the fingerprints of the other kidnapper don't work. Since she's likely suffering from a concussion (nausea, dizziness) on top of the leg wound, she's unable to drag Two-Tone's body upstairs.
Chapter 19[]
Just as Ehric, Evale, and Assail find the cabin, Marisol stumbles out wearing only a parka, boots, and a lot of blood. Shaken, confused, and still wielding the gun, Assail has to reassure her that it's really him. The twins discreetly remove a battered and bloody Benloise from the back of the Range Rover while Assail comforts her, privately worried that she was likely raped. He sends her off with his cousins, promising to catch up with them once he was done at the cabin.
Assail puts a bullet in Benloise's gut, ensuring a long and painful death. Just inside the cabin's open door, he finds a severed hand on the floor and a body with both hands intact. In the basement, he finds Two-Tone's body and a stump where one hand used to be. He chains Benloise in the cell where Sola had been kept and with Two-Tone's body, leaving him to slowly die.
Assail dematerializes to a pre-determined location and calls Mrs. Carvalho to let her know that she's "alive and within my care." As he's on the phone with her, the Range Rover pulls into the rest stop and Sola has a chance to speak with her grandmother. As they talk, Assail cleans himself of Benloise's blood as best he can in the washroom and wonders how to get medical care for Sola.
Chapter 20[]
After seeing Beth safely ensconced in Darius' mansion, John Matthew gets an urgent text from Tohrment that "visitors" are coming into the clinic and extra security's needed. At home, John has to tell Wrath via Vishous about why Beth isn't with him. Wrath then takes out his displeasure on the billiards room, throwing couches and pool tables. The Brothers try to keep him contained to just the billiards room so only the one room is destroyed until Lassiter hits him with a blowdart treated with a sedative.
Chapter 21[]
Beth is having an existential crisis, remembering her life as a human, her transition, wondering about the history between her parents, and seeing Wrath's side when she remembers that her mother died in childbirth. She calls the mansion to let Wrath know she's not coming home and gets Tohr who tells her that her hellren's asleep without the details of how he got into that state. That pisses her off all over again and she tells Tohr where she is and that she'll be back at nightfall; he helps put her memories into perspective.
Chapter 22[]
Sola's fighting shock and when she sees the Brotherhood's security measures on their way to the clinic, she assumes it's a military base and Assail is an undercover cop of some type that's going to arrest her. She's oddly comforted when he palms a weapon, telling her that he doesn't trust anyone other than himself with her, not even allies who owe him a favour, and that he'd made a solemn vow to her grandmother that he'd bring her home safe.
Rehvenge scans the emotional grids of the three vampires with her and has them disarm before Jane's allowed to see Sola. Getting territorial and especially protective, Assail refuses to allow Manny to see Sola since she's naked from the waist down. During the examination, Sola explains to Jane that one of the kidnappers tried to rape her, but she got him first. At that point, Assail passes out.
Chapter 23[]
The healer tells Wrath the Fair that Anha's likely pregnant, but isn't likely the cause for her condition and recommends that he feed her his vein.
Wrath's in a better headspace, but not by much since he's regretting losing it and the situation with Beth, when he wakes up and realizes that Beth was going to be either at Darius' mansion or Safe Place. He tries calling Safe Place first, but she's not there.
Chapter 24[]
Assail helps Sola, who's still adjusting to the fact that she's safe now, eat. She cries over killing her kidnappers and asks him how many people he's killed; he tells her that he doesn't kill without reason, but when he does, he relishes it. Since she did a lot of praying during her ordeal, she's having a crisis of conscience and Assail feels helpless, unsure how to help her. He reminds her that she did what she had to in order to survive and the men who took her were going to do much worse to her before killing her. She has a chance to leave her lifestyle and people like Benloise behind with a fresh start.
He reassures her that her grandmother is at his place, which has better security than her home and it wasn't likely anyone would even think to look for her there.
Chapter 25[]
Beth wakes up to Wrath's phone call and he tells her everything from how he's worried about losing her- which would kill him, too, as a bonded male- to what if their young is blind, not to mention he doesn't want to sentence a son who won't have any choice to the role of king. He admits that he hates his job from being stuck behind a desk, the rigamarole, and being stuck in the house.
Beth tries to describe the hollow feeling she's had for over a year that something is missing and that she desperately wants to be a parent, including all the crap like late days with a crying baby, the diapers, everything. They both realize that they've let their lives come between them and they haven't stopped to actually talk as a couple. They haven't had enough time together as it is, let alone trying to make time for a little one.
Wrath tells her that he thinks she's going to go into her Needing soon because of how emotional he's been lately as a reaction to her hormones. Thinking about it, she realizes she's been craving chocolate, put on weight, and been moody. Now that she's out of the house, he's much calmer. He makes it clear that he's not blaming her or using it as an excuse, just giving context, and apologizes.
Chapter 26[]
Although it's his birthday and Saxton is all but disowned, he answers a summons from his father, Tyhm. While forced to wait as his father's already meeting with someone in his study, Saxton sees that his father's been researching the laws of succession, which he knows does not bode well for Wrath.
Chapter 27[]
At Beth's urging, Wrath goes to talk to Zsadist about how he felt about becoming a father. Z explains that there wasn't any planning involved, Bella had gone into her Needing, hadn't wanted to use drugs to knock her out, so Z helped her through it as her male. He'd been terrified and it took him nearly a week after the birth to finally realize that his females were safe. Z recommends he talk to Tohr since Wellsie had wanted young, but Wrath's reluctant to re-open his Brother's old wounds. Z tells him that if he'd do it for anyone, Tohr would do it for Wrath.
Beth is shocked at the sight of the billiards room; Z explains what had happened and that Wrath is talking to Tohr. On her way up to her room, Beth sees the throne and desk in Wrath's study and tries to see things from his perspective. She hadn't realized until he'd opened up how much he hates his job and wonders about the selfishness of having a child that would be resigned to the same fate without any say in the matter for themselves. If she was one of the few good parts about Wrath's life now, no wonder he lost it if she said she wanted to risk having young.
Chapter 28[]
Saxton's father informs him that his cousin's getting mated and he expects another lecture on being a failure to the bloodline and a "waste of DNA." When Tyhm asks him what he's been doing, Saxton's rather tempted to brag that he's First Counsel to the king, but decides to be discreet and Tyhm assumes that Saxton doesn't have any clients that run in his elite social circles. Saxton asks about the research spread out in the library and Tyhm tells him that it's about the succession because Wrath is a terrible ruler, especially compared his father, Wrath the Fair. He lists the raids, Beth's human side, and Wrath's reluctance to rule until he mated as reasons why. Saxton suspects Tyhm's involved in the coup because he felt his own son was a disgrace.
As Assail drives Sola to his home, she's worried about how to keep the details of what happened a secret from her grandmother.
Chapter 29[]
iAm sends Selena to feed Trez, which jacks up the sexual tension between them to 11.
Chapter 30[]
Tohrment tells Wrath that when it comes to their females, "They are as empty without a young as we are empty without them." Saxton tries to pull lhim aside to warn him what he learned, but Wrath's determined to find Beth and work things out and unwilling to put her off any longer.
Anha finds herself at the door to the Fade and when she says Wrath's name, the son that she's pregnant with appears to her as a child. Wrath tells her that she doesn't have to live, all she has to do is swallow what's in her mouth. Then he helps her leave the mists and back to herself, telling her that she'll do the same for him one day.
Chapter 31[]
Trez's time with Selena is tainted by his memories of all the women he's been with.
Marisol's grandmother's cooking for Assail, Ehric, Evale, and Marisol, although Marisol's not really eating. After eating, he gives her his room and says he'll sleep in a guest room downstairs. She asks him to stay with her because she's so rattled. He gets her settled into a bath before going to check on her grandmother, but before he can do that, he has to take care of himself in another bathroom.
Chapter 32[]
Beth finds the sedatives Wrath got from Havers in their bathroom and as she's wondering where he got them from, her Needing hits. Rather than force Wrath to either watch her suffer or service her, she tries to use the drugs, but the waves of cramps prevent her from reaching it. Wrath finds her crying on the bathroom floor and she yells at him to drug her. Instead, he chooses to service her.
Chapter 33[]
To keep herself from replaying what happened over and over, Sola has sex with Assail. He knows what she's doing and he's ok with that.
Chapter 34[]
Convinced he's losing Anha, Wrath the Fair's contemplating how to take his own life just as she regains consciousness. The Brother Tohrture tells Wrath that Anha's looks the same as Wrath's father did right before he died. Wrath becomes determined to ahvenge her.
Chapter 35[]
Trez confesses everything about his past to Selena: how he was sold to be the Anointed One, running away, sleeping with tons of human women to discourage the s'Hisbe from coming after him since he was "tainted goods." She's struggling with her disease, but hides it.
Chapter 36[]
The Needing has been eight or nine hours of hell and Beth's wondering why on earth she'd wanted it.
iAm can tell that Trez has bonded with Selena and is not happy about it. The brothers fight about it and Selena returns to the Great Camp to give them space to work out their issues.
Chapter 37[]
After her ordeal, Marisol thinks about giving up the type of life she's led since she was trained by her dad at the age of nine or ten.
Trez meets with s'Ex and tells him that even if he kills his parents, Trez won't return to the Territory. In return, s'Ex wants Trez to provide him with women he can have sex with at iAm and Trez's condo.
Chapter 38[]
Abalone meets with the glymera in order to get more information on the plot against Wrath. Ichan and Tyhm present their argument, which Abalone sees right through. He abstains from voting.
The Brotherhood re-pledges their fealty to Wrath the Fair and he in turn promises loyalty. They bring a terrified Abalone, a young courtier of no particular standing, to Wrath. He tells Wrath that three days ago he couldn't sleep and wandered the basement of the First Family's castle where he found a hidden room beneath the kitchen with a camouflaged door. The door hadn't closed entirely and inside there were three people throwing stinking herbs into a cauldron. They were talking about how Wrath the Elder had died and were wondering how to adjust the dosage for someone smaller. The naive young male convinced himself that it was all in his imagination because they had sworn fealty to Wrath the Fair and surely wouldn't plot against him. After the queen fell ill, he couldn't fool himself any longer.
Chapter 39[]
Even though he's wrecked after Beth's Needing, Rehvenge and Saxton tell Wrath the council voted him out.
Assail helps Sola pack up her home in preparation for leaving Caldwell. She tells him that she can't be in his life since he's going to not only continue drug dealing, but expand his business now that he has no competition. He tries to deny it or promise that he'll keep her out of it and is upset over the turnaround. She wants a clean start and won't tell him where she's going for fear he'll come after her and she won't be able to say no. With Benloise's family still out there, she and her grandmother would be targets to get to Assail. The decision is agonizing for them both.
Chapter 40[]
Tohrment suggests re-writing the Old Laws to nullify the Council's vote, but Saxton says that Wrath's already been effectively removed from power. In the absence of a King, the Council can appoint a ruler. Saxton blames himself for not foreseeing this and offers to resign, to which Wrath says hell no.
Wrath the Fair, Abalone, Ahgony, and Tohrture go to investigate the secret room Abalone told them about and discover the cauldron still full of poison. Ahgony theorizes that Wrath's cousins are behind the plot since they'd be next in line for the throne. The Brothers want to go after the prime suspect, Enoch, but Wrath wants to extract his own vengeance, ignoring the Brothers' attempts to keep him out of danger. He has Ahgony announce that Anha is alive and well while he and Tohrture lie in wait for the conspirators to return for a second attempt.
Chapter 41[]
In the aftermath of her Needing, Beth's trying to wrap her head around the possibility that she's pregnant. Heading downstairs to look for Wrath, she realizes that she's submitting the hypothetical kid to the throne and possible assassination attempts like what Wrath survived. She finds the entire household gathered in the dining room, looking somber.
The Band of Bastards is celebrating Xcor's victory with the Council's vote, but Xcor's anxious that Wrath hasn't yet responded. He still yearns for Layla.
Chapter 42[]
Although Wrath hated being king, now that it's been taken from him, he finds he misses it. Although Wrath reassures her that he loves everything about her, but Beth still hates that she's used as the reason. They argue over it because even though he hated the way he had to rule she thinks he'll end up resenting her for it. To get him to stop yelling, she slaps him and tells him that if he wants to quit of his own choice, that's fine, but she won't let anyone take the throne from him. He confesses that he doesn't think he's strong enough for it, but she thinks she is.
When a healer for the race enters the secret room, Wrath the Fair and Tohrture grab him. He gives up all the names he has, which are all of Wrath's advisers except for Abalone. Wrath then kills the conspirator. Tohrture tells him that he'll take care of the body and that the Brotherhood will train him so he can ahvenge his family. He promises that all food for the First Family will be delivered by the Brothers themselves and prepared by their own doggen, who are not involved in court intrigues. The Brothers will personally taste the food and sleep outside the First Family's quarters.
Chapter 43[]
Layla goes outside for some fresh air and to cope with the fact that the male she loves is behind the plot that's upset the household. She calls Xcor and hears the corresponding ringtone from the just the other side of the wall of the grounds.
Assail and Sola have angry sex.
Chapter 44[]
Wandering in the mists surrounding the compound, Xcor wants to see Layla, but without any plan on how to do so. She finds him instead and lays into him for what he did to Wrath. To get him to lay off his campaign against Wrath, she offers to sleep with him.
Rehvenge suspects he's the glymera's next target as leahdyre, but he'd only stayed on in the role to help the King, Queen, and the Brotherhood. Beth asks him and Saxton what their options are, but there don't appear to be any.
Chapter 45[]
Since Layla claims she wouldn't sleep with him otherwise, Xcor turns down her offer even though he wants nothing more than to take her up on it. He doesn't want her to be coerced in any fashion into being with him. She pleads with him to re-instate Wrath's power because the Brotherhood will go to war with him and the Bastards. He asks her to meet him under the maple tree where they first met.
Trez has one of the prostitutes working at the Iron Mask go to meet s'Ex. Outside the club, a lesser tries to sell him drugs marked with the death symbol from the Old Language. Trez calls Butch after dispatching the lesser.
Chapter 46[]
Stewing in her thoughts and the drama, a solution occurs to Beth.
After seeing Layla safely back to the mansion, Xcor returns to his hideout where the Bastards are celebrating in anticipation of his taking the throne the following night. For his part, however, Xcor isn't feeling so elated.
Chapter 47[]
Assail lets Sola leave without saying goodbye, watching her where she can't see him, even Ehric and Evale seem pissed that she's leaving. Her grandmother doesn't understand why they're leaving Caldwell for Miami and thinks that Sola's making a mistake. After they're gone, Assail does some coke.
Chapter 48[]
Beth finds Wrath running himself into exhaustion on a treadmill and asks him to divorce her effective the day before to remove the grounds for the Council's vote. That way he has the choice of keeping the throne and she doesn't care about being queen. She points out that their official mating is effectively only a piece of paper and their relationship is strong with or without it. He's absolutely opposed to the idea and says that the young she's possibly carrying would then be a bastard. She responds that no one in their lives would ever think that about their child anymore than the young Layla's carrying. He thinks that maybe he only cared about the throne as a way of remembering his parents.
Chapter 49[]
Disheartened, Beth checks Wrath's email and finds a message from Abalone wherein he apologizes for not being brave enough to stand against the Council. He feels he dishonoured his father's legacy and resigned from the Council in favour of working with commoners as their champion as his repentance.
Beth gets an idea and tells Wrath to meet her in the foyer in two hours while wearing something nice. She doesn't give him any more details because she's afraid he'll just argue with her.
Selena's disease is progressing and finding her in the middle of an attack, Trez feeds her his blood.
Chapter 50[]
While speaking with Beth, John Matthew manages to fight off a seizure before getting cleaned up with Xhex's help.
The household gathers in the foyer and Lassiter appears at the top of the staircase dressed like Elvis in a white, sequined bellbottom jumpsuit, complete with pompadour and his wings spread wide; he went online to get ordained as a minister in less than hour to marry Beth and Wrath. She's beginning to regret asking him and thinks maybe she should have asked Vishous instead.
When Wrath arrives, she tells him that they're getting married in a human ceremony so he got divorce her and keep the throne since he swore to her that her traditions are just as valid as vampiric ones.
Chapter 51[]
Stunned, Wrath realizes Beth's solution is perfect. Lassiter describes Beth for him and how the household's gathered for the ceremony, which is quite informal at first; it's a nice reprieve after the glymera's crap.
Afterwards, they prepare to sign the divorce papers that Saxton drew up, pre-dated to three weeks ago. Rehvenge happily promises to deliver it to the Council.
Chapter 52[]
Trez and Selena start to have sex for the first time, but he freaks out when he finds out that she was a virgin. They argue about it until they're interrupted by a call on his cell.
Chapter 53[]
Wrath ends up signing the papers after remembering everything she'd given up to be with him, sacrificing everything she'd ever known to adopt his people and traditions. He and Beth retreat to the library to consummate the union.
Trez's phone call is from s'Ex and he has to leave Selena to make good on his end of their deal. The Queen's pregnant and if it's a girl, then Trez might be free if the astrology indicates the infant will be queen.
Chapter 54[]
Before Xcor can be crowned, Rehvenge delivers a copy of the divorce papers in front of the entire glymera.
Chapter 55[]
Beth throws up and Wrath overreacts, insisting she see Doc Jane immediately. Jane doesn't find anything concerning, but they're operating on the assumption that she's pregnant.
Chapter 56[]
After making sure Beth's resting comfortably, Wrath heads downstairs and finds there's a crew working on repairing the damage he did to the billiards room. He stops to talk to the vampires, who are in awe, about their work and a little about their families. After Wrath leaves, they comment to Rhage on how approachable Wrath seems compared to the rumours about how he doesn't care about commoners. The brief exchange left a considerable impression on the workers.
Chapter 57[]
Anha's recovering well and all twelve Brothers moved into the chamber next to the First Family's suite so they could watch over the King and Queen 24/7. She tries to dissuade Wrath from ahvenging her, but he's determined to protect his family himself.
Chapter 58[]
Xcor takes his anger out on a lesser and only Layla can divert him from his bloodlust. Meeting underneath the maple tree where they first met, he asks her if Wrath had truly left Beth and, having practiced the words for hours, she tells him that Wrath gave up his love to keep the throne. He asks her rather crudely if she's still willing to be with him.
Chapter 59[]
Trez confesses to Selena that he's a pimp.
Throe confronts Layla, demanding to know what she said to Xcor and she repeats what she'd told Xcor about Wrath divorcing Beth. He warns her that Xcor is capable of great betrayal.
Chapter 60[]
Selena's upset over Trez tells her, including that he's slept with thousands of women.
Assail's now dealing with the drug importer directly and selling to the Lessening Society for distribution. His cousins are concerned over how much coke he's been doing and that he's not doing well after Sola left.
Chapter 61[]
When Beth wakes, she's freaked out to find her stomach's hard and distended, but her hands are so thin the Queen's ruby slips off her finger. In the kitchen, iAm, Fritz, and Wrath dote on her, but she ends up throwing up all the food she managed to eat. Jane and Beth think it's time to get her to a human specialist Jane knows; while Wrath doesn't like that idea, they can't go to Havers because that would shatter the illusion that they're divorced. Worse, it's daylight and neither he nor the Brothers can go with her. iAm offers to go with them since sunlight doesn't hurt Shadows.
Chapter 62[]
Sola wants to go back to Assail, but stays in Miami because she'd promised God that if she made it out of the torture cabin then she'd make a fresh, clean start.
Chapter 63[]
At the human clinic, Beth learns that she's pregnant and by human standards, her hormone levels indicate that she'd be in her second trimester, which shocks Beth. The doctor can hear a fetal heartbeat and they do an ultrasound to confirm.
Chapter 64[]
Back at the mansion, Beth tells Wrath that not only is she pregnant, but it's a boy and she's about four months along, which means that she was pregnant before her Needing. She's freaking out, even though the baby is healthy, and he's ecstatic.
Chapter 65[]
Beth's glad to see Wrath's happy again and so is the entire household, including Tohr. After celebrating with the household, Beth takes a nap and Wrath doesn't see going to work as an onerous chore for once. Now that Beth's pregnant, he still hopes that their son isn't blind, but he knows that it doesn't mean their kid won't be able to have a life. Looking back at how he'd first reacted, Wrath realizes he'd been foolish to avoid having a young just because they might be blind.
The construction foreman requests an audience with Wrath to thank him for helping get a new wheelchair for the foreman's disabled daughter, a couple of ramps, and an accessible van. When the foreman goes to present a token of thanks in keeping with tradition, Wrath chooses to be open about his blindness and explains that's how he knows how important accessibility is to the foreman and his family. Then Wrath realizes that up until that moment, he'd felt inferior because of his blindness. The token is a length of red cloth made by the foreman's mate who weaves in the traditional manner; some time ago she spent a year creating her finest piece and couldn't bear to sell it and now knows that she'd been holding onto it to give to Wrath. He tells the foreman that he's having a son and wants to use the gift to receive the young in. Since the young won't be eligible for the throne, that means he can choose his own path, which Wrath realizes means in a way he's free, too, of what he'd thought his parents' expectations were of him. He finally feels like they would approve of him.
Chapter 66[]
Xcor goes shopping for clothing that isn't fighting leathers before meeting with Layla where she agrees to his terms: sleeping with him in return for stopping his campaign for the throne, but he doesn't demand anything of her yet.
Chapter 67[]
Wrath's reluctant to be with Beth while she's pregnant. He admits that he hadn't felt adequate as king, continually comparing himself to his father, but it was actually he who didn't approve of himself and he's learned to let that go.
Chapter 68[]
Abalone goes to an address that was given to him in full expectation of his own execution. There he's greeted by Beth and Wrath, who tells him that he needs his help and asks him to be his first cleric. Abalone pledges his loyalty to Wrath.
Throe confronts Xcor about meeting with Layla having followed him to their latest rendezvous. Already pissed that Throe was so close to Layla, Xcor throws him up against a wall and orders him to stay out of Xcor's private life and far from Layla. He tells Throe that he's done trying to take the throne and Throe blames Layla for the change in Xcor's ambitions. He says it's not Layla, but rather that if Wrath was willing to give up his shellan then he deserved the throne. Throe makes it clear that he is vehemently opposed to giving up the coup.
Chapter 69[]
Trez turns down casual sex because he only wants Selena. Sola's lonely without Assail.
Chapter 70[]
Several months later, Wrath's completely changed over his rule by finally focusing on the people rather than the glymera, he takes audience's at Darius' former mansion that's now referred to as the Audience House. Beth's about four weeks due and Wrath's nervous.
Anha worries as Wrath leaves to kill the conspirators.
Chapter 71[]
After ruminating for hours, contemplating his own parents and his soon to be born son, Wrath asks Saxton to do a sort of bequest for the young.
Chapter 72[]
Dragging six bodies behind him, Wrath the Fair returns home to Anha, who's been worried about him ever since he left. They agree that more than anything, they hope that the young Anha's carrying finds a mate like they found each other.
Chapter 73[]
Anha appears to Wrath in a dream, telling him that she's there to repay a debt since he'd saved her life in a similar fashion so many years ago and that he needs to wake up to save Beth. He wakes in a panic and Beth reassures him that she's feeling fine, but he still calls the human doctor she's been seeing. As Beth starts to get up, she finds that she's bleeding.
She's rushed down to the clinic where Doc Jane tells her that she thinks the placenta's lower than it should be and is likely separating from the uterine wall. To save both of them, Jane says that they need to perform a Caesarean.
Chapter 74[]
Since Wrath uses scent as much as, if not more than, any other scent to orient himself, the blood, antiseptic, and fear is terrifying him. Unable to communicate, John Matthew holds his hand and soon Little Wrath is born. Beth's continuing to hemorrhage and Jane recommends a hysterectomy to save her life.
Chapter 75[]
Beth wakes up and Wrath fills her in on what happened. The household all gathers in the clinic and begins chanting "All hail the King" until Wrath tells them that he abolished the monarchy the night before. In order to circumvent more assassination attempts on him and his family, he's having an election soon so the people can choose their leader and he's disbanded the Council. He also ripped up their fake divorce decree.
Chapter 76[]
A month later Beth and LW are doing well and Wrath's ecstatic over being a father. As he's showing LW the moon, the entire household approaches him and Beth tells him that he was unanimously elected king of the race for life. Abalone led the effort and the commoners Wrath had been working with all voted for him.